Life was very different
in the "olden days." Most children had a full complement of chores and
other responsibilities and quite a lot was expected of the youngsters
in a family. Your students will be interested in trying their hand at
some of the "chores" described in this project. Interestingly, candle
dipping and butter churning were considered "drudge" work by most children
in the olden days. Ask your students if they would like these chores to
be part of their regular routine!

As your class participates
in this project, keep in mind that primary age children are still forming
a concept of time. You may wish to use less precise references to times
past  such as the "olden days" or "long ago before
your parents, your grandparents, and you great-grandparents were born."
The goal of this project is to provide experiences that will a)serve as
a foundation for what students will learn about history in later grades
and b) inspire an appreciation for the uniqueness of the past as well
as the present.

To guide you in tailoring
your olden days unit to the particular history of your community or region,
contact the following places in your locality for field trips, class visitors,
and artifacts to borrow:

Local historical
society

Antique shop

Nature center

Farm

Vintage book shop

Craft shop or
local artisans' guild

Farrier

Living history
museum

We have also found many
books and videos that are helpful in bringing
this unit to life and providing additional details. As you plan your unit,
consider whether you want to enjoy these hands-on activities over the course
of a week or concentrated into an olden days festival such as a "Homestead
Day." Your decision will probably depend on the availability of space
and adult volunteers, but you'll find these activities give you lots of
flexibility to tailor the unit to your own situation.

Life without electricity,
especially the electric light at night we all take for granted, is difficult
for young children to fathom. One of the biggest family jobs in the olden
days, especially before oil lamps became popular, was to make candles.
In the past, candle wax was derived from beeswax or boiling animal fat
into tallow, and it was a greasy, messy job disliked by most children.
However, by using a few simple modern materials and exercising some caution,
your class can have the experience of making their own beautiful candles.
Candle-dipping is not only an art; it has interesting science applications
your students can discuss, such as the effect of hot and cold temperatures
on the wax, and the fact that a substance can change from solid to liquid.

This process is easiest
and quickest if you have access to a stove where you can heat water in
some deep pots.

Safety Note:
set up your dipping area far from the stove. We also recommend having
one or two parent volunteers on hand for this activity to monitor for
safety, since the wax does get hot.

Materials:

Paraffin blocks,
such as those used for canning (8-10 blocks per class) Beeswax can also
be used, but it is a more expensive alternative.

broken crayon
fragments, with labels peeled off, sorted by color groups (have each
child bring in a supply from home)

cotton string
for wicks, cut into 18" lengths (or you may purchase wicks from
a craft store)

very cold tap
water

wooden stirring
sticks (available at paint stores) or an old wooden spoon

newspaper to protect
your tabletop

old potholders

small labels or
masking tape to identify each child's candle

one or two deep
pots of boiling water, and a stove

Safety Note:
The paraffin is Never melted directly over the heat source!
Always create a "double boiler" effect as described below.

Break up one block
of paraffin in each of six cans. Add a generous amount of crayon pieces,
a different color family in each can. Set the cans upright in a deep kettle
(or kettles) of boiling water, so that the level of the water is halfway
up the side of the cans. Stir and break up paraffin and crayon wax until
it is entirely melted and the color in each can pleases you.

Fill the remaining
two cans with very cold water.

Two children at a
time can dip candles  each child gets a wick and
works with three wax cans and one water can. Leaving about six inches
untouched by wax to hold on to, dip the string first into wax, then immediately
into cold water...then into another color of wax...then back into cold
water...repeating the process for about five minutes. After the first
few dips, you may need to carefully straighten out the wick if it curls
in the hot wax. Each layer of wax on the wick is hardened by the cold
water and allows the next layer of wax to adhere. Gradually, the candle
begins to thicken and take shape. It's fascinating to watch the different
layers of colors build up. When it is about 12 inches long and 3/4 inch
in diameter at the bottom, let the candle sit in the cold water for about
30-60 seconds to let it get firm. Attach a name label to the wick, and
set aside for further hardening. Talk about why the candle is thicker
at the bottom and thinner, or "tapered" at the top hence the
other name for candles  "tapers."

You or an adult volunteer
will need to add and melt more paraffin and crayon pieces as the level
in the cans decreases. You will also need to replenish the ice cold water
every 10 minutes or so, as students take their turns at dipping.

It's fun to have
background music playing while doing this activity, and have students
march around the table, alternating dipping in wax and water. Students
may be interested to learn that in authentic candle dipping, double-length
wicks were used, held in the middle, so that two candles at a time could
be dipped on one wick. Many double wicks were suspended from a dowel and
a dozen candles could be made at one time! They were hung to dry by the
exposed bit of wick between the two candles and snipped apart later. You
may be able to find fine handmade candles today that are made this way.
However, we think your students will be amazed at the beautiful results
of their own first efforts at candle making! Remind students as they take
their candles home, that they should only be lit and used under an adult's
supervision.

Butter Churning

Before people were
cholesterol- and fat-conscious, butter was a common condiment on every
table. Today's children have no idea of where many foods come from, and
it's fun to watch their amazement as something as basic as butter forms
right before their eyes.

If it is possible
to locate an authentic butter churn, that would be the ideal way to show
the children how long and hard adults and children had to work to make
butter in the olden days. Some people disliked the job of churning so
much that they invented a DOG-driven churn! (See Historic Tools and
Gadgets, by Bobbie Kalman. Crabtree, 1992, pp. 5 and 7.) Just follow
the description in Chapter Two of Little House in the Big Woods,
by Laura Ingalls Wilder for use with either a standing churn or a tabletop
jar-mounted model.

For a less complicated
process that still shows part of the complexity of making butter, you
can churn the cream in baby food jars. If you are able to start collecting
the jars early enough, then each child will be able to have his or her
own jar of butter to churn and sample in school and then take home to
share with the family. Labeling the jars with each child's name before
starting the project will eliminate confusion when the process is finished.
An alternative procedure is to make one or two larger batches in clean
plastic peanut butter jars and let everyone take turns churning the big
jars.

The process itself
is really quite simple. Purchase, or have families donate, containers
of heavy cream (not light or half-and half...it must
be heavy!), enough to fill each jar 2/3 full. Keep the
cream refrigerated until you are ready to begin. Fasten each jar lid securely.
Then have the children begin toshake the jar up and down vigorously. While
shaking, or churning, we like to sit in a circle and talk about where
the cream came from, and how in the olden days cream would rise to the
top of a bottle of milk.

To pass the time
while churning, children often used to recite this traditional chant:

Come, butter, come!

Come, butter, come!

(Peter) standing
at the gate

Waiting for a butter
cake......

Come, butter, come!

In our classes, we
go around the circle, giving each child a turn to substitute his or her
name in the chant. After about 10 minutes of shaking, the children will
notice a change  no more sounds of sloshing cream
inside the jar! At this point, what they have made is whipped cream! Encourage
them to keep shaking...in just another minute or two, a round ball, surrounded
by liquid, will begin to form inside the jar. This round ball is the butter,
and the liquid is buttermilk. This is an excellent opportunity to "talk
science"  about how a substance can change
its properties from a liquid to a semi-solid, and finally to a solid plus
a liquid.

Children should then
drain off the water into a cup  some adventurous
children may enjoy drinking the rich buttermilk. A special treat right
after making the butter is to spread it while still soft on saltine crackers
or bread and enjoy some of the freshly churned butter. When done, cap
the jars, label with each child's name, refrigerate, and send home at
the end of the day.

If you find you have
more cream than you need for each child's butter jar, use the extra to
fill a larger jar 2/3 full, and proceed as above, but stop the process
when you reach the whipped cream stage. Serve with fresh berries and a
bit of sugar.

Natural Dyeing
and Weaving

Most clothing was
made at home in the olden days, and many pioneer families had to spin
their own yarns and make their own cloth. Color was extremely important
to these people as a way of brightening what otherwise might be a dreary
existence. Of course, they looked to nature as a source for the colors
they wanted.

This hands-on activity
lets children discover the natural sources for some of their favorite
fabric colors. They can dye 6-inch samples of cotton fabric or thick cotton
twine. We suggest you set up the activity by reading Charlie Needs
a Cloak, by Tomie DePaola, focusing on the different steps involved
in creating dyes and making cloth.

About two weeks ahead
of time, ask your families to save and send in onion skins. Also put out
a call for several bunches of beets (or cans of plain sliced beets); two
bags of raw cranberries; several pints of blueberries; and if available
in your area, black walnut hulls. Finally, you will need one crock pot
for each dye you prepare, some old spoons, a strainer and some tongs.

The day before
you plan to use the dyes, put your materials in the pots, add water to
fill the pots 1/2 to 2/3 full, and cook on high. Start your pots cooking
first thing in the morning, let them cook throughout the school day, and
then unplug before you go home. Refrigeration overnight is not necessary  just
cover the pots. All you'll have to do the next morning is plug them back
in to allow the dyes to reheat and strain the liquid to remove the food
solids. Explain to the children that, although these dyes are made from
are food items, we are not preparing or preserving them to be eaten, and
nothing should be put in their mouths.

To simplify our project
for first graders (and to keep our borrowed pots from discoloring), we
did not add any mordant such as alum to the dye solutions to make them
permanent. For longer-lasting results, however, you may wish to do so.

Children use the
tongs to dip their cotton cloth strips or twine into the solutions. Have
a good supply of newspapers laid out to provide a drying area, labeled
for each of the dyes used. When the dyed cloth or twine is dry, the students
can glue their samples onto stiff paper or cardboard and write the name
of each dye next to the samples.

Another dimension
to this activity can be accomplished by using plain white woolen yarn
cut into 18 inch lengths. Your beautiful dyed yarn can later be used on
handmade cardboard looms to create small woven projects. Your librarian
can direct you to craft books showing how to make these projects.

We were lucky one
year to have a parent who raised sheep on her farm and was an experienced
spinner. She volunteered to visit our class to demonstrate wool carding
and spinning for our class. We used undyed yarn she spun for our dyeing
projects that year. In other years, we have turned to our local craft
shops to suggest names of spinners who could share their craft with our
classes. Children are fascinated by the spinning wheel, so do try to include
this as part of your activities.

Life and work were
hard in the olden days, but the inventive people of those times always
had the goal of trying to make life just a little bit easier. A look at
tools and gadgets of the past can tell us a great deal about the quality
of life in those days.

In our community
in upstate New York, we are very fortunate to be able to tap into the
resources of our local nature center, which also has a small homestead.
From the homestead collection, we are able to borrow a collection of about
20 unusual tools that were commonly used in the olden days, but which
look absolutely foreign to most of us today. In your community, in addition
to a nature center, you might consult your local historical society or
perhaps an antiques dealer to help you put together a similar collection
on loan. In the absence of any of these resources, obtain Bobbie Kalman's
beautiful volume Tools and Gadgets from the "Historic Communities"
Series (Crabtree, 1992) and utilize its excellent illustrations for a
pictorial adaptation of this activity.

Arrange the tools
in a big circle that allows the children ample room to walk around and
look at all of them. Encourage them to pick up the tools with care (when
appropriate  use good judgment for sharp tools)
and try to figure out what they are and how they might have been used.
When the children have had enough time to investigate the tools, have
each child sit near a tool of his or her choice. One at a time, go around
the circle, asking the children what they think the tool might be and
what it might have been used for. If the children are having a difficult
time, give some clues about how the tool was used or ask the group what
parts of the tool might remind them of. If no one correctly guesses the
true name and purpose of the tool, then share that information with them.
This is a very enjoyable guessing game; some of the real uses for these
tools are as funny as the children's guesses!

School
Days

Not only were schools
structured very differently long ago, but our national attitude toward
formal schooling was very different, too. School attendance in the 1800's
was largely determined by a family's geographical location, their financial
situation, and even their race.

One fascinating contrast
for young children is the fact that 19th century children grew into adult
responsibilities so quickly that attending school was not always a family's
top priority for their offspring. Usually, it was only city children who
attended school on a daily basis for most of the year. Farm children in
rural areas were needed to assist their parents during all but the winter
months, and so could attend school only briefly each year. For many children,
such as boys in coal mining towns, their only access to any formalized
education was at Sunday School. It was a very rare situation for ANY child
to attend school past eighth grade; the privilege of high school or college
education was reserved for a wealthy minority, usually males. Today's
children are also amazed to learn that many school teachers in the olden
days began their careers at about 16 years old!

Bobbie Kalman's Early
Schools (Crabtree, 1982) is a "must-have" resource for pictures
showing all aspects of school life in the 19th century. Invite students
to look carefully and critically at the pictures and see what similarities
and differences they find in comparison to today's schools. Encourage
them to pay attention to details such as the size of the class, clothing,
desks, apparent ages of the students, learning materials in the room,
etc. A debate over which was better  "then"
or "now"  is sure to erupt!

For a delightful
and memorable activity, try creating a facsimile of a 19th century one-room
schoolhouse for your students. Bobbie Kalman's Early Schools is
perfect for ideas to help you set this up realistically.

Here's what we assembled
for our one-room schoolhouse:

facsimiles of McGuffy's
Readers

teacher-made hornbooks
created from cardboard, with a string for students to wear around their
necks

individual slates

a pretend "dunce
cap" made from poster board

a pointer for the
chalkboard

old-fashioned calico
dress and cap for the teacher

a school bell

During our 20-minute
"lesson," we arranged our desks in rows; we sat stiff-backed (and
were reprimanded for slouching!); and we practiced phonics using the hornbooks,
did "sums" on our slates, and read aloud from McGuffy's Reader.
To make the experience more realistic and fun, we also administered several
mock "punishments" for minor infractions such as fidgeting or
not looking at the teacher (having told parents and students in advance
that we were going to do this!!) Before long all the children were clamoring
to sit in the corner with the dunce cap on!

During the last 10
minutes of the one-room schoolhouse session, we stepped out of character
back into the 20th century to help put things in perspective for the children.
We felt it was very important to do this immediately following the schoolhouse
activity. The students enjoyed comparing and contrasting the old fashioned
rote and drill method of learning with our more modern ways. Although
they had some trouble articulating the concept, they were quick to spot
the very stern and didactically moral tone of the McGuffy's Reader as
being totally different from anything they had ever encountered in school
books. Of course, the comparison of discipline measures old and new was
fun and instructive to talk about as well.